SERMON 

PREACHED  BY 

Rev.  C.  E.  Sumner, 

OF  LINCOLH^  PARK  CHUI|CH, 

ON 

Thanksgiving  Day, 

NOVEMBER  27th,  1  8  7  8, 

IN  THE 

I 

FULLERTON  J|VENUE  PRESBYTERIAN  Gt^URCl^, 

0I3;iC.A.C3-0. 


SUBMITTED  FOR  PUBLICATION  BY  REQUEST. 


!lliriO!S  HlSTORiCM 


A 


SERMON 


PREACHED  BY 


Rev. 


j 


TJIMIITEE/, 


?km\  OF  LINCOLIH^  PARK  CHUI^CH, 


T  HANKSGIVING  DaY, 


N  O  E  M  13  E  R  2  7  t  li  ,  18  7  8, 


IN  THE 

I 

i 

FULLERTON  j|VENUE  PRESBYTERIAN  CI^URCl^, 

I 

i 

'  oh:io^c3-o. 


SUBMITTED  FOR  PUBLICATION  BY  REQUEST. 


Digitized  byjtia  iEdjeEpet  Archive 
in  2018  with^fending  from 

183  E.  IVashinston  St., 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign 

■'  CHICAGO.  r'  Cl 


https;//archive.org/details/sermonpreachedbyOOsumn 


"THE  POWERS  THAT  BE,  ARE  ORDAINED  OF  GOD.” 

i 

ROMANS.  13, 


I 

j 

This  is  a  ground  for  Thanksgiving.  Out  of  the  di-  1 

I 

vine  element  in  government  spring  our  greatest  hopes  ^ 

I 

as  a  nation.  For,  while  good  government  has  ever  been  i 
regarded  as  one  of  the  greatest  blessings  bestowed  upon 
man,  the  fact  of  a  divine  purpose  entering  into  it,  is 
an  assurance  of  the  worth,  and  of  the  permanence  of 
what  government  aims  to  secure ;  it  is  a  pledge,  that,  if 
true  to  what  is  intrusted  to  us,  society  will  be  carried 
to  a  goal  worth  the  striving  for. 

i  .  . 

I  It  is  befitting  that  we  re-call  to-day  the  individual 
mercies  of  which  we  have  been  the  recipients  during 
the  past  year — that  we  remember  the  divine  hand  that 
I  hath  crowned  each  hour  with  his  goodness  —  that  we 

i 

I  remember  in  what  peace  and  security  we  have  enjoyed 
rV 

fV^ 


I 


\ 

4  T  h  a  71  k  s  giv  i  Sei'ifion. 

the  fatness  of  the  land  —  that  we  re-call  how  pleasant 
life  has  been  made  by  the  inter-change  of  friendly  and 
social  relations,  and  that  so  often  we  have  been  the 
recipients  of  those  favors  from  others  that  have  en¬ 
kindled  within  us  the  glow  of  true  sympathy  and 
friendship,  and  that  for  our  intellectual  tastes  no 
provision  has  been  wanting;  so  that,  if  a  cloud  has  for 
an  instant  overshadowed  us,  we  can  yet  truly  say,  that 
the  lines  are  fallen  unto  us  in  pleasant  places,  that  we 
have  a  goodly  heritage. 

Still  the  day  is  full  of  larger  and  more  inspiring 
associations  ;  it  is  national  in  its  origin,  national  in  its 
history  ;  it  re-calls  the  earlier  days  in  our  national  life ; 
it  takes  us  back  to  the  May --Flower  and  its  passengers, 
to  the  cluster  of  huts  lining  either  side  of  a  street  run¬ 
ning  back  from  the  New  England  coast,  to  the  first 
Thanksgiving  unsurpassed  in  sincerity  and  earnestness. 
As  these  early  scenes  rise  before  us,  we  can  but  contrast 
the  present  and  the  past  with  a  profound  sense  of  grati¬ 
tude  to  the  Divine  Being,  who,  year  by  year,  has  crowned 
our  aims  and  our  labors  with  success,  and  has  so  wonder- 


T Jl  a  n  k  s g iv  i  n g  Sermon.  5 

fully  unfolded,  in  the  history  of  the  nation,  his  own 
great  and  beneficent  plans.  It  was  remarked  by  a  cele¬ 
brated  English  statesman,  that  he  had  observed  in  his 
later  years  that  there  are  great  under-currents  in  hu¬ 
man  affairs  which  no  statesmanship  can  foresee  and 
provide  for,  and  that  he  is  the  wisest  statesman  who 
first  sees  these  currents,  and  adapts  himself  to  them, 
and  endeavors  to  shape  society  accordingly.  The  thought 
is  appropriate  to  our  theme.  The  fact  of  a  divine  provi¬ 
dence  in  the  history  of  men,  gives  ground  for  careful 
watching  that  we  may  recognize  mercies  and  be  true  to 
responsibilities: 

As  growing  out  of  the  thought  of  a  divine  purpose  in 
government,  it  may  not  be  unprofitable  for  us  to-day  to 
consider  briefly  the  importance  to  us  of  a  higher  Chris- 

I 

I 

tian  Patriotism. 

There  is  a  cheap  patriotism  that  finds  expression  in 
the  explosion  of  gun-powder,  in  hurrahs  for  the  national  | 
flag,  in  growing  red  in  the  face  because  of  real  or  fancied 
insults  to  national  pride.  There  is  a  nobler  patriotism  ^ 

I 

I 

that  leads  one,  when  his  country  that  protects  his  fire- 

1 

i 

_ _  _  _ _ j 


I  - - - - - - - - 

6  T li  a  11  k  s g iv  i  71  g  Sermon, 

!  —  ^  I 

I  I 

side  and  his  altar,  is  in  danger,  to  lay  down  his  life  to  | 

I 

I  protect  and  preserve  her  interests.  Such  a  patriotism  | 
I  makes  the  hero.  Still,  in  both  these  cases,  there  may 

I 

I  be  wanting  that  higher  patriotism  that  recognizes  a  divine 

\ 

purpose  in  national  life  and  institutions,  and  that  aims 
ever  to  co-operate  with,  and  give  expression  to  that  i 

i 

purpose.  How  often  will  a  people  sacrifice  much  blood  | 

I 

i 

and  treasure  to  preserve  intact  their  institutions,  and  I 
then  grow  suddenly  apathetic  as  to  the  real  character  ! 

t 

and  efficiency  of  those  institutions.  Martial  music  may  j 

arouse  to  an  enthusiasm  far  more  needed  when,  in  the  I 

1 

hum-drum  experiences  of  every  day  life,  corrupt  influen-  ; 

i 

ces  are  undermining  what  gives  to  a  people  real  dignity  | 

I 

and  honor.  The  old  Roman  was  patriotic,  but  he  would  ; 
impoverish  his  provinces  to  magnify  his  capital.  Benevo¬ 
lence  entered  little  into  his  conception  of  patriotism. 

But  Christian  Patriotism  aims  not  simply  to  protect  | 
from  foreign  indignities  ;  it  does  not  rejoice  at  the  sound  ! 
of  the  war  note  for  an  opportunity  to  display  its  valor. 

I 

It  eliminates  those  ambitions  and  passions  that  have  so  i 

I 

often  dazzled  the  world.  Christian  Patriotism  seeks  to  j 


I 


T Ji  a  71  k  s givi 71  g  S  e  7' i7i  o  7i .  y 

conserve  national  life,  the  institutions  of  a  people,  for  the 
highest  welfare  of  humanity  and  the  glory  of  God.  It 

i 

seeks  for  the  fullest  expression  of  the  Kingdom  of  i 

I 

I 

Christ  on  earth,  and  looks  upon  society  with  refer-  i 

ence  to  what  God  reveals  in  his  word  and  in  his  | 

i 

providences  of  its  ultimate  aim.  Losing  sight  of  no 

1 

human  interest,  it  accepts  for  its  motto  the  truth  that  ■ 

i 

“  God  is  with  those  who  are  with  him.”  It  would  ; 

i 

carry  the  state  up  to  a  Christian  Ideal  —  a  result  : 
secured  only  as  religion  and  patriotism  are  combined.  s 
For  such  a  love  of  country  we  are  called  upon  by  ' 

I 

what  has  been  already  secured. 

There  are  those  who  are  ever  sighing  for  the  ”  good 

t 

old  times,”  who  are  so  keenly  alive  to  the  evils  inci- 

I 

i 

dent  to  human  experience,  that  they  think  we  are  ever 
on  the  verge  of  destruction,  and  so  fail  to  recognize  the 
real  progress  that  has  been  made.  They  feel  that  we 

f 

j 

are  drifting  farther  and  farther  from  the  simplicity  of 
manners  and  the  rugged  virtues  of  earlier  days.  With 
the  increase  of  population  and  the  development  of  ; 

I 

material  strength,  with  the  broadening  and  deepening  | 


8 


Thanksgiving  Sermon. 


of  human  interests,  the  conflict  of  moral  forces  in  our 

I 

nation  has  indeed  become  more  intense.  But  that  is  only 
a  superflcial  view  of  society,  that  fails  to  recognize  the 
mighty  force  for  good,  that  has  been  developed  in  our 
growth,  and  wherein  lies  the  strength  of  our  hope  for 
the  future. 

That  Providence  designed  this  country  for  some  high 
end,  can  not  be  questioned.  The  material  and  moral 
interests  intrusted  to  us,  furnish  abundant  proof  of  this. 
Millions  of  acres  of  the  most  fertile  lands,  are  annually 
yielding  up  their  products,  and  our  educational  and  re¬ 
ligious  institutions  are  daily  increasing  in  numbers  and 
in  power.  Since  the  early  days,  when  our  nation  con¬ 
sisted  of  but  a  few  settlements  upon  its  eastern  border, 
it  has  extended  North,  South  and  West,  spreading  over 
an  area  of  three  and  a  half  millions  square  miles,  em¬ 
bracing  a  wide  diversity  of  climate,  and  occupying  a 
territory  unsurpassed  in  its  agricultural  and  mineral  re¬ 
sources.  Aside  from  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the 
j  riches  of  the  mines,  notice  the  remarkable  conformation 

I 

of  the  country,  the  adaptation  of  its  different  parts  to 


T  Ji  a  n  k  s  g  i  v  i  n  g  S  e  r  in  on.  9 

each  other,  so  as  to  secure  the  highest  welfare  of  tlie 
whole,  as  though  it  were  a  living  organism;  and  the  fact, 
too,  that  it  is  so  situated  as  to  make  it  the  great  highway 
of  the  nations,  as  steam  and  electricity  are  making  neigh¬ 
bors  of  all  peoples. 

We  would  by  no  means  ignore  the  various  elements 
from  different  sources,  that  have  entered  into  our  national 
life  to  shape  and  modify  it  ;  but  can  we  fail  to  recognize 
a  divine  forethought  in  the  development,  largely,  of  the 
controlling  forces  of  that  life  in  its  first  stages  out  of 
the  rugged  soil  and  hardy  climate  of  New  England,  be¬ 
fore  there  was  lavished  upon  us  the  wealth  of  these 
Western  prairies ;  that  there  the  mountain  stream  and 
the  rivers  of  the  valleys  were  utilized  for  extensive 
manufactures,  the  products  of  which  ha\e  been  exchanged 
for  the  wheat  and  corn  of  the  prairies,  thus  cementing 
the  different  parts  of  the  country  by  mutual  interest  as 
well  as  by  social  ties  ?  Is  it  by  mere  chance  that  our 
mines  and  coal-beds  were  so  long  hidden  in  darkness, 
side  by  side,  as  it  were,  till  society  in  its  skill  and 
invention,  and  in  its  moral  aims,  was  ripe  for  the  pur- 


— - - 1 - 

lo  1' Ji  a  n  k  s g  iv  i  71  g  Se  7' 771071. 

poses  of  an  all  wise  Ruler?  We  must  be  blind  indeed, 
if  we  fail  to  see  the  hand  of  God  in  the  character  of 
the  land  he  has  given  us. 

Again,  glance  at  what  has  been  secured  by  way  of 
educational  influences  —  those  agencies  that  pertain  not 
so  much  to  man’s  physical  well-being,  though  involved 
in  it,  as  to  his  intellectual  cravings  and  aesthetic  tastes. 
Schools,  Colleges  and  Seminaries  of  learning  do  not 
spring  up  in  a  day ;  they  are  born,  often,  out  of  great 
struggle,  and  are  the  growth  of  years.  Contrast  the 
country  now,  in  its  educational  influences,  with  what  it 
was  a  century  ago,  even,  and  what  have  we  as  our 
possession  to-day  ?  A  system  of  free  schools  that  are  the 
pride  of  the  country  and  the  emulation  of  the  world. 
Colleges  that  compete  in  the  advantages  they  offer  with 
the  Universities  of  the  old  w^orld.  Instruction  is  offered 
in  almost  every  branch  of  human  skill  and  industry,  that 
would  seem  to  leave  little  to  be  desired.  Our  Scientific 
Schools — what  are  they  not  accomplishing  in  the  appli¬ 
cation  of  science  and  art  to  the  comforts  and  convenien¬ 


ces  of  life.  Our  public  libraries;  our  academies  of  design; 


T  }l  auks  g  i  v  in  g  S  e  7'  in  o  n . 


1 1 

the  picture  galleries,  public  and  private,  scattered  through¬ 
out  the  land  ;  all  these  things  are  great  and  beneficent 
gifts  and  are  elements  of  power. 

Let  us  look  a  moment  at  the  still  higher  agencies  per¬ 
taining  to  our  welfare  as  a  people,  that  have  been  strength¬ 
ening  and  maturing  in  the  years  that  have  passed. 
While  knowledge  is  power,  it  is  not  always  a  power  that 

elevates ;  it  is  not  a  power  that  keeps  individuals  or  | 

i 

nations  from  the  rocks  of  error,  where  human  hopes  j 
I  and  apsirations  are  wrecked.  But  not  behind  all  the  other  | 

I  j 

marvelous  gifts  that  we  have  by  way  of  material,  and 

i  I 

'  .  .  .  .  .  I 

I  educational  influences — restricting  the  term  educational  to 

I 

;  that  which  aims  at  the  development  of  the  intellectual  j 

I 

j  and  aesthetic — are  great  moral  and  spiritual  forces.  The 
thousand  churches  scattered  throughout  our  land,  dot¬ 
ting  every  valley,  adorning  every  city,  with  their  spires 
pointing  heavenward,  speak  of  a  life  of  faith  and  aspira- 
tion  that  has  kept  pace  with  a  world  rushing  at  head¬ 
long  speed.  The  multiplied  agencies  for  religious  ,  in¬ 
struction,  the  perfection  and  power  of  the  Sunday  School 
system,  are  matters  for  profound  gratitude.  It  is  only 


12 


T Ji  a  n  k  s g iv  i n  o;  Sermon. 


as  we  stop  to  think  what  our  country  with  its  multiplied  ; 

1 

interests  has  become,  through  the  slow  process  of  years, 
and  by  the  toil  of  generations,  that  we  can  appreciate  our  ' 
inheritance,  or  the  great  possibilities  before  us. 

And  such  as  the  nation  is,  with  its  untold  wealth  of 
material  and  moral  resources,  developed  and  undevel¬ 
oped,  it  is  to  us  the  gift  of  a  Divine  Providence  for 
some  great  end. 

Now,  because  of  our  productive  wealth,  as  shown  by 
our  agricultural  products,  and  our  manufactures,  because 
of  an  enlightened  public  sentiment,  because  of  generous 
views  upon  the  rights  and  needs  of  humanity,  because 
of  our  educational  and  religious  institutions,  we  stand 

I 

to-day  upon  a  vantage-ground  never  before  reached. 
And  the  question  that  rises  before  us  is,  what  direction 

I 

shall  be  given  to  all  the  forces  —  material,  mental,  and 
spiritual  —  that  have  been  gathering  in  the  life  of  the 
nation  ?  What  are  the  issues  that  are  to  grow  out  of 
these  great  interests  intrusted  to  us  ?  What  is  the  highest 

o  o 

« 

conception  that  comes  to  us,  as  we  see  our  canals  almost  ; 
blocked  with  the  burden  of  produce  transported  upon  , 


T  Jl  a  n  k  s  g  i  v  in  g  S  er  in  o  n . 


13 


them  ;  our  rivers  and  lakes,  covered  with  steamboats 
plying  from  one  landing  to  another — our  docks  lined  with 
vessels?  As  we  look  upon  the  rushing  train,  and  think 
of  the  country  as  fairly  alive  in  its  resistless  energy ;  as 
we  look  upon  our  palatial  business  blocks,  magnificent 
warehouses  and  hotels  ;  as  we  think  of  these  things — 
what,  I  would  repeat,  are  our  highest  conceptions  —  what 
the  sentiments  most  deeply  stirred  ?  Do  we  see  nothing 
in  the  freighted  vessel  gliding  over  our  lakes  and  rivers 
but  what  is  to  gratify  the  pride  and  ambition  of  men  ? 
Are  we  rejoicing  simply  in  the  greatness  and  perfection 
of  a  material  civilization  ?  Do  we  see  in  all  this  only 
what  pertains  to  comfortable  homes  ?  Ancient  nations 
have  rejoiced  in  great  material  prosperity,  and  because 
they  failed  to  recognize  the  meaning  of  their  gifts,  their 
glory  passed  away. 

There  are  tendencies  in  our  government,  and  in  so¬ 
ciety,  that  we  can  not  but  look  upon  with  anxiety. 
Great  gifts  never  come  to  a  people  without  great  dan¬ 
gers.  The  unparalleled  prosperity  that  has  marked  our 
career,  while  a  matter  of  profound  gratitude,  has  neverthe- 


less  generated  many  baneful  influences  that  are  under¬ 
mining  a  true  social  and  political  life.  Pride  has  been  ' 

I 

I 

I  inflated  as  we  have  watched  the  development  of  our 

I 

I  resources,  and  there  has  been  awakened  an  eager,  grasp- 

i  ing  desire  for  money,  and  an  indulgence  in  the  luxurious 

i 

life  which  wealth  ever  brings,  productive  of  most  un- 

I  healthful  influences  upon  the  body  politic.  Ambitious 

I 

j  men  and  corrupt  rings  would  seem  to  be  diverting  the 

I  forces  and  the  energy  of  national  life  from  high  and 

t 

1 

!  noble  aims,  to  selfish  and  unworthy  purposes. 


i 

1 

j 

I 


Now,  is  there  no  demand  for  a  Christian  Patriotism 
that  apprehends  the  relation  of  government  and  society 
to  Christ’s  Kingdom,  to  resist  these  untoward  influences, 
and  to  preserve  what  has  been  intrusted  to  us  for  the 
grand  results  that  Christianity  aims  at  in  its  union  with 
civilization  ?  We  understand  what  it  is  to  unite  material 
forces  for  great  results.  From  our  iron  mines  and  our 
coal-beds  we  have  our  manufactures ;  steam  and  elec¬ 
tricity  have  wrought  marvelous  changes,  annihilating,  as 
it  were,  time  and  space.  But  the  union  of  material  and 
moral  forces — has  that  been  sufficiently  pronounced  ?  Is 


Thanksgiving  Sermon. 


15 


the  spiritual  seizing  and  controlling  the  material  for  the 
highest  ends  to  which  it  can  be  applied  ?  Does  the 
spiritual  life  of  the  nation  correspond  with  its  grand 
physical  development  ?  All  that  has  been  achieved,  the 
development  of  our  agricultural  and  mineral  resources, 
the  growth  of  our  manufactures,  the  perfecting  of  our 
educational  and  religious  institutions,  should  serve  as  a 
basis  whereby  we  may  more  efficiently  give  expression 
to  the  divine  purpose  for  which  the  nation  has  been  kept. 

Again  we  are  called  upon  for  a  higher  Christian  Pat¬ 
riotism,  because  of  the  opportunities  offered  us 

In  the  life  of  a  nation — as  in  that  of  an  individual  or 
in  any  enterprise — there  is  often  development  up  to  a  certain 
stage,  when  new  problems  are  to  be  solved,  new  difficul¬ 
ties  appear  that  must  be  grappled  with  and  mastered, 
or  the  nation  falls  back  from  the  goal  to  which  it  was 
apparently  hastening.  Slavery  was  fastened  upon  the  na¬ 
tion  in  its  early  days ;  we  endured  the  evil  till  the 
forces  had  developed  by  which  the  incubus  could  be 
throwm  off,  and  then  came  the  struggle.  The  victory 
seemed  to  open  to  us  a  new  and  brighter  career.  The 


t6 


T  h  a  71  k  s  g  i  V  in  g  S  e  r  in  d  n . 


opportunity  was  seized,  and  the  nation  has  been  carried 
forward  in  the  march  of  civilization ;  and,  let  it  be  hoped 
that  events  will  prove,  in  a  higher  spiritual  progress.  By 

so  much  as  we  were  lifted  by  that  struggle  and  by  that  • 

I 

j  victory ;  by  so  much  are  greater  opportunities  offered 

i 

us,  and  greater  responsibilities  put  upon  us.  The  insti¬ 
tutions  that  have  been  preserved,  are  to  be  kept  by  a 

i 

Christian  Patriotism  for  the  high  ends  of  a  Christian 

State.  How  each  day  are  greater  burdens  being  rolled 
^  upon  us  ?  The  great  question  with  us  now  is  not,  how 

I 

:  shall  we  extend  our  territory,  increase  our  commerce  and 

I 

manufactures,  work  our  mines,  perfect  our  schools  ;  but, 
rather  how  shall  we  make  the  thought-power  and  the 
heart-power  of  the  country  commensurate  with  the  mighty 
'  body  that  has  been  given  it,  and  equal  to  the  task  of 

solving  the  great  social,  moral,  and  religious  problems 
thrust  upon  us. 

i 

Here,  now,  are  our  grandest  opportunities,  and  no  na- 

! 

tion  was  ever  so  fairly  equipped  for  fhe  work  before 

I 

'  it.  The  very  idea  of  our  government  —  the  idea  that 

brings  it  most  into  sympathy  with  Christ’s  Kingdom — is 


1/ 


'1  Ji  a  11  k  s  g  i  7/ '/  ;/  g  S  c  r  in  0  11. 

that  of  moral  force.  And  here  comes  tlie  strain  ;  our 
safety,  our  self-preservation  lies  in  a  process  of  education, 
and  that,  too,  experience  shows,  of  Christian  Education. 
Hence,  the  necessity  that  Christian  men  shall  seek,  not 
only  to  give  greater  efficiency  to  distinctively  religious 
institutions,  but,  should  they  not  also  seek  persistently  to 
infuse  into  all  branches  of  government,  from  the  j^rimary 
caucus  up  to  the  chief  magistracy,  Christian  ideas  ? 

This  is  not  done  by  letting  these  things  alone;  but 
we  are  called  upon  to  do  it,  because  of  the  fact  that 
God’s  hand  is  in  the  government,  and  because,  he  asks 
our  co-operation  in  every  way  to  carry  the  State  up  to  a 
Christian  Ideal.  There  may  be  great  error  involved  in 
the  wide-spread  impression  amongst  us,  that  government 
is,  “  by  the  people,  of  the  people,  and  for  the  people.” 
Government  is  ordained  by  God;  it  is  for  God;  it  is  to 

realize  in  human  life  his  idea  of  the  wants  and  the  destinv 

«/ 

of  humanity.  The  moon  shines  not  by  its  own  light, 

r 

but  as  it  reflects  the  light  of  the  sun.  So  government,  in 
its  highest  aim,  exists,  not  for  itself  alone,  but  should  reflect 
the  will  and  purpose  of  a  Divine  Being. 


Israel  was  no 


i8 


Thanks giv in  cr  Sermon. 


# 


more  under  the  guiding  hand  of  God  than  is  our  own 
country  to-day.  As  a  nation,  they  did  not  adequately 
apprehend  the  Christ,  and  the  kingdom  that  God  would 
realize  out  of  their  history.  Without  a  realizing  sense 
that  there  is  a  divine  purpose  in  our  history,  we  may 

miss  of  the  inspiration  we  need,  and  fail  of  understanding 

* 

our  opportunities. 

That  we  may  realize  that  we  areGii  the  line  of  God’s 
providences,  let  us  glance  for  a  moment  at  the  fact  that 
the  eyes  of  the  world  are  turned  upon  us.  Can  we 
glance  at  the  past,  the  present,  at  our  material,  moral, 
and  spiritual  resources,  and  ask  for  what  reason  ?  We 
have  impressed,  not  alone  the  most  enlightened  countries, 
but  people  from  all  countries  and  all  classes  are  flocking 
to  our  shores.  And  we  are  ready  for  them.  The  coun¬ 
try  has  been  two  centuries  and  a  half  getting  ready. 
Christian  Patriotism  welcomes  them.  But  this  brings  a 
strain  upon  our  educational  and  religious  institutions. 
Self-preservation  will  demand  earnest,  active  effort. 

Japan,  just  awakening  from  her  Rip  Van-Winkle  sleep, 
and  seeking  to  overtake  the  world  in  the  progress  it 


Thanksgiving  Sermon.  1 9 

has  made,  is  eagerly  watching  our  life,  imitating  our  man¬ 
ners  and  our  institutions.  Her  brightest  youth  are  being 

t 

sent  to  this  country  to  be  educated  under  tlie  influences 
of  a  Christian  Civilization ;  she  is  asking  for  our  best 
teachers  to  establish  schools  for  herself  While  Japan  sits 
thus  at  the  feet  of  our  nation,  what  is  she  to  be  taught? 
What  are  the  demands  upon  a  Christian  Patriotism  ? 

China,  too,  is  not  only  sending  many  of  her  youth  here 

for  an  education,  giving  us,  thus,  an  opportunity  to  make  | 

i 

j 

ourselves  felt  in  her  civilization,  but,  through  the  Golden  j 

i 

I  Gate  upon  our  Western  coast,  she  is  sending  her  thou-  i 

I  1 

i 

sands,  who  bring  with  them  the  vices,  the  superstitions, 
and  the  religion  of  a  heathen  civilization ;  we  feel  them 

i  ' 

a  burden  upon  the  moral  life  of  the  nation  ;  but  it  is  : 
one  that  God  has  put  upon  us  to  lift — and  greatness  lies 

I 

in  lifting  it.  It  is  an  opportunity  not  to  be  lost  in  our  , 

'  I 

efforts  to  work  out  our  destiny  as  God  has  planned  it.  | 

;  i 

I 

I  The  Indian  and  the  Freedman — God’s  wards  as  well  as  ' 

I  i 

'  i 

I  ours  —  ask  for  all  that  the  best  of  governments  can  ' 

I  .  I 

I  secure  to  human  life.  ! 

I 

I  The  poor  from  the  old  world  are,  by  the  thousands,  j 


1 


20 


T  Ji  a  n  k  s  g  i  v  in  g  S  e  r  in  o  n 


I  seeking  their  homes  in  our  midst,  often  bringing  with 


them  great  ignorance,  and  deeply  imbued  with  supersti¬ 
tion  and  infidelity  ;  they  become  our  citizens,  share 
in  the  making  of  our  laws,  and  help  direct  national 
life ;  they  influence  the  character  of  our  homes  and 
of  our  religion.  But  that  they  are  with  us  under  the 
shapings  of  God’s  Providence,  who  can  doubt  ?  He 
who  suffers  not  a  sparrow  to  fall  to  the  ground 
without  his  notice,  is  not  unmindful  of  the  wants  of 
any  of  his  needy  children.  That  this  government 
and  this  land  are  his  for  them,  as  well  as  for  us, 

who  will  question  ?  But  in  the  premises  what  is  de- 

« 

manded  of  a  Christian  Patriotism — of  that  love  of  coun¬ 
try  that  rejoices  in  its  truest  greatness — a  greatness  that 
must  come,  if  it  comes  at  all,  in  the  line  of  God’s 
providences?  If  we  have  ignorance,  superstition,  and 
infidelity  thrust  upon  us,  is  it  not  that  they  may  be 
wrought  upon  by  the  power  of  a  Christian  Faith  ? 

In  view  of  these  opportunities  for  lifting  up  humanity,, 
how  important  do  the  great  religious  enterprises  of  our 
country,  our  various  missionary  and  benevolent  insti- 


T  k  a  11  k  s  g  i  V  i  n  g  S  e  rino  n .  2 1 

tutions  appear,  and  how  dear  to  us  is  their  prosperity. 

When  we  consider  the  greatness  of  tlie  work  thrown 
upon  us,  and  its  character  also,  viewing  it  in  relation  to 
the  highest  welfare  of  our  own  land,  as  well  as  to  the 
great  movements  of  thought  throughout  the  world,  we  I 

i 

t 

can  but  especially  rejoice  to-day,  that  at  this  time  one  i 
of  the  greatest  agencies  of  moral  power  is  being  so  felt.  | 
I  refer  to  the  revival  of  biblical  study.  More  and  more 
do  we  rejoice  in  th.e  growing  strength  of  our  Sunday 

0 

School  work,  as  we  realize  the  power  of  God’s  word  to 
throw  off  every  incubus  that  depresses  national  or  indi¬ 
vidual  life.  From  the  awakened  interest  in  the  study 
of  this  divine  revelation,  if  it  can  become  wide  spread 
and  lasting,  we  have  greater  hopes  that  unbelief  and 
infidelity  will  be  scattered  to  the  winds  than  from  all  that 

human  reason  can  offer. 

f 

I 

So,  while  to-day  we  rejoice  in  the  blessings  of  the  | 

•  I 

I 

past  year,  in  our  homes,  our  friends,  our  prosperity,  in  j 

I 

t 

the  country  that  we  possess,  and  in  all  that  it  suggests  | 

i 

to  us  of  the  goodness  of  God,  let  us  also  rejoice  in  the  i 

I 

I 

\  thought  that  others  are  blest  with  our  blessings.  Let  i 


I 


22  Thanksgiving  Sermon. 

us  rejoice  that  our  government  is  God’s  Government, 
that  through  us  he  is  working  out  his  own  grand  designs. 
Let  us  rejoice  in  the  great  opportunities  offered  us  for 
moral  and  religious  culture,  and  labor,  by  which  society 
may  be  carried  up  to  that  state  of  perfection  to  which 
God’s  providence  would  lead  it,  that  we  may  find  our¬ 
selves  in  our  greatest  hopes  and  aims  in  harmony  with 
the  Kingdom  of  Christ  that  is  ultimately  to  fill  the  whole 
earth. 

I 

i 

i 

i 


I 

I 


\ 

j 


I 


•/ 


